Get Real: So you think you can sing!
By: Liz Dadson
November 15, 2023
It’s amazing to watch people compete in athletic games, such as the Olympics or the Stanley Cup Finals or even the Fit Body Games in Kincardine during the summer.
I could watch these competitions for hours and have no inclination, whatsoever, to participate.
My athleticism ended in high school when, after Grade 10, I no longer had to take physical education. I used to enjoy a good, brisk walk, but that was before I purchased my own car and could drive everywhere I needed to go.
I say, good for you, to those who want to push themselves to the limit, to physical exhaustion and beyond. I can take photos of that for hours.
People often ask me, while I’m taking photos of these events and writing down names, whether I would consider taking part.
No thanks, say I, in utter astonishment. I will take my abs of styrofoam and go home!
Don’t you want to cross it off your bucket list? enthuse these athletic wonders of science.
Please – it’s not even ON my bucket list. I don’t even HAVE a bucket list. I know my limits and I play within them!
But I can still appreciate watching those who have the grit and determination to push themselves beyond their limits, excel at a sport, and run for a cause.
It’s just not my cup of tea.
Fortunately, for me, there is a group that lines up with my sheer lack of athleticism. Or, at least, that’s what I thought.
I have joined the Kincardine Community Singers and we have been rehearsing extensively since September for an amazing Christmas concert.
Little did I know, that each rehearsal begins with a bit of a work-out – stretching the body and warming up the voice. Okay, this can’t be too bad. Then there’s the two hours of singing, which includes sitting, standing, and low and behold, memorizing songs – something I haven’t had to do since high school.
Here’s the crunch, I’m an alto, so I sing harmony. So, I have to memorize the words and the music in order to sing about a half-dozen songs without the aid of the book in front of me.
And we have to stand on wooden risers for an hour at a time during the concert. And now there are three concerts!
Perhaps, I should have done a bit more research before I jumped into the fray.
Too late, the concert is less than a month away and I have made the commitment so I’ll be there, with bells on – or maybe not – but definitely ready to sing my heart out for the benefit of the audience.
It’s a great concert with some fantastic music, so get your tickets! They’re going fast. So fast, in fact, that for the first time ever, the choir has added a third date – Friday night – rather than just Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
“Getting in the Mood for Christmas” runs Dec. 8 and 9 at 7:30 p.m., and Dec. 10 at 3 p.m., at Knox Presbyterian Church, Kincardine.
Tickets are $20 each; available at Penetangear in downtown Kincardine or from members of the choir.
I know I’ll be there, trying to blend in with the other altos, and reaching for the stars!
Ah, life in the fast lane!
Comment on this story? Click here.
Related Stories
No related stories.
